Villa fan in peace. Im a long time admirer of Norwich's brand of football. Win, lose or draw...Norwich have an entertaining passing style that I've admired for as long as i can remember.
Norwich' model: This may divide opinion, and im no expert on it ... but I admire the scouting system and the business model SW et al runs at Norwich. Always rated him at Huddersfield. By bringing in players like buendia for 1 to 2 million...developing the player, entertaining the fans, winning promotion and a then receiving a richly deserved profit...if they decide to sell...Norwich are proving again and again that they have a formula that works financially for the club. Yes, football is about winning. But its about winning long term realistic battles. I don't tune into motd to see man citeh win again. It's to see Norwich or Southampton or burnley show that it can be done, all whilst reinvesting and keeping their clubs on a firm financial footing....and winning the hearts and minds of average folk like me. This is far more difficult, imho, than the gung ho cash lobbing path some clubs have trodden before. I, for one, have seen how, in the wrong hands, clubs like Villa, can face major uncertainty with inept owners and rash buys.
Buendia: from what I've seen, in the current money mad market, buendia is worth much more than the 40 million ive seen quoted. He has a lot to his game. His runs into the pockets, his flicks, his intelligence off the ball...it's a rare gift these days. I cant understand why other teams aren't queuing up for him. If he had played for Argentina v Chile the other night, the sum would be different. With some of the dross that is being sold for bananas money these days....Buendia looks like a transfer of the summer for me. I'm not assuming villa will get Buendia. Far from it. I'm a realist...and he could, and should have his pick of the teams. However, money talks...and I'm sure Norwich will take the best deal for the club. The days of having to sell Eadie to Leicester for 3.5 million are thankfully long gone for Norwich.
The future: I'd be happy to see Norwich challenging in the upper echelons of the Premier league. But realistically, as with Villa, it's a long way off. It could be worse, and we could go the way of citeh, and lose the real identity and souls of our clubs.
The past: im still waffling, and showing my age, but I remember when Norwich sold Kevin Reeves, after he played for England, to Man City for a whopping 1 million or more back at the start of the 80s. At the time, it went down like a lead balloon with my school pals....but it did pave the way for the river end stand (my former hairdresser once informed me). That 1 million transfer back then embittered fans, but was a stadium game changer to Norwich at that time....and in the long run.
I remember Villa paid a similar combined sum for Withe, Morley and Bremner around that time...albeit not marquee signings then..but they proved to be key members of the league and European Cup winning side in the following 18 months.
So i guess the point I'm making is, its about the bigger financial picture. (Trying not to sound condescending). Norwich will use the money they receive for Buendia wisely... bringing in some prospects...maybe some free agents on bigger salaries....whilst building even more financial stability in uncertain times. Let's not forget, there are still some fine players at the club. I'm sure I'll be reading once again how a lump of Spanish/Argentine coal has once again been turned into a Norwich diamond.
Whatever the outcome on the buendia or even grealish transfer situation, Good luck next season, and in the future.
